A Super Bowl hangover and a head coach brothers’ clash: Five things to look out for in Week 12 of the NFL season
By Andy Scholes and Ben Morse, CNN
(CNN) — Fantasy football players are going to have to dig deep in Week 12 of the NFL season as six teams are on a bye – the most we’ve had in a single week so far this season – with the Atlanta Falcons, Buffalo Bills, Cincinnati Bengals, Jacksonville Jaguars, New Orleans Saints and New York Jets all off.
Most of those teams needed a vacation considering how their seasons are going.
Here’s five things to know for Week 12:
Your Super Bowl favorite: the Detroit Lions
For the first time ever, the Detroit Lions are the favorites to win the Super Bowl.
After destroying the Jaguars 52-6 in Week 11, oddsmakers have the Lions as +350 to win it all. The next best is the Kansas City Chiefs at +460.
Detroit is now 9-1 on the season and looks like a shoo-in to have the best record in the NFC.
Quarterback Jared Goff went from throwing five interceptions against the Houston Texans to having just five incompletions against the Jags and, with it, may have crawled back into the MVP conversation.
But despite having the joint-best record in the league, an almost unstoppable offense and a play-making defense, Goff stressed that nothing is easy about winning in the NFL.
“I keep getting that question, it kind of makes me a little upset,” he told reporters when asked if having a good mindset makes winning easier. “I got it on the radio the other day, I got it after the game, none of this is easy.
“I know we scored 52, but it’s freaking hard in this league and we’ve been playing well, we’ve been doing a lot of good things on offense, but by no means would I ever characterize anything we’re doing as easy or without effort. It’s a lot of hard work and a lot of time. The games are obviously very hard always and tough to win and just rewind a week ago at Houston, how hard that win was. It’s never easy.”
The Lions are playing at the Indianapolis Colts this Sunday.
Super Bowl hangover continues
The San Francisco 49ers suffered another disappointing loss on Sunday as Seattle Seahawks QB Geno Smith scampered in for a game-winning touchdown with 12 seconds left.
The loss dropped the Niners to 5-5 on the season, but more importantly, they are now 1-3 in the NFC West and are in last place in the division!
In those three division losses, the 49ers led by four or more in the fourth quarter in all of them! They are the first team to blow that many division games since 2000.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan was asked if there is anything to the Super Bowl hangover and said: “I don’t think there is an answer about a journey or Super Bowl hangover.
“I think it’s about what’s happening in that exact game,” he told reporters. “The week before was almost the same game. I think we went down 13 to 10 or something in the third. I think they came back and tied it up, and we went down and won it on the last play.”
It doesn’t get any easier for the 49ers this week. They are in Wisconsin to play the Green Bay Packers on Sunday and then head to Buffalo to face the Bills the week after that.
Chiefs look to bounce back
The Chiefs’ loss to the Bills means we no longer have any undefeated teams left this season and ended the team’s 15-game winning streak dating back to last season.
Kansas City is now 9-1 and will play at the Carolina Panthers on Sunday. Will this finally be the game Patrick Mahomes gets it going early?
Mahomes doesn’t have a touchdown pass in the first quarter of any game this season. He does, however, have five interceptions in the first quarter.
Mahomes says that a “sense of urgency from the beginning of the games” is imperative for the Chiefs to get back to winning ways.
“I feel like offensively we can be better in the way we start and the way we play throughout the entire game because you can tell whenever a lot of times in the fourth quarter when we need to score, we go right down the field and score,” Mahomes told reporters on Wednesday.
“If we can play the entire football game like that, it won’t put us in these situations where (we’re) in one-score games at the very end.”
The Chiefs could be bolstered by the return of running back Isiah Pacheco who has returned to practice after suffering a fractured leg in Week 2.
The Panthers defense should provide a nice opportunity for a big game.
Carolina though is on a winning streak – they’ve won two in a row with 2023 No. 1 pick Bryce Young at the helm and are looking for their first three-game winning streak since 2021.
Steelers streaking
Football can be a funny game. Two weeks ago, the Bengals scored five touchdowns and lost to the Baltimore Ravens. Last week, the Pittsburgh Steelers scored zero touchdowns and beat the Ravens.
That was thanks to fantasy football hero Chris Boswell who made six field goals to lead them to a 18-16 win over Baltimore.
The Steelers have now won five straight as they head to Cleveland to take on the lowly Browns on Thursday Night Football. Pittsburgh is favored in the game, but short week divisional games are always tricky.
Steelers QB Russell Wilson has previously won a Super Bowl during his time with the Seahawks and lost in another. And when asked how the 2024 Pittsburgh squad compares to those Seattle teams, the quarterback said: “I definitely think that we have a chance.
“I think the biggest thing for us is continuing to just take each week as the most important week of all,” Wilson told reporters on Tuesday. “And I think that it’s not really even just the week, it’s just the day, just the moments in between.
“I think the greatest teams, the greatest players in any sport, especially the teams I’ve been on is the moment – it’s never too far away. It’s right here, right now, and you’re just locked into that and be obsessed over that, and you enjoy that part, and you embrace that part, and you love that part of it because you know you never know what tomorrow holds.”
The ‘Harbaugh Bowl’
For the first time since the 2013 Super Bowl, John and Jim Harbaugh will face off against one another.
Back then, John and the Ravens beat Jim’s Niners 34-31 in a thrilling game in New Orleans.
John is 2-0 all-time against his brother. This time around, Jim is coaching the Chargers and they will be hosting the game on Monday Night Football.
On facing his brother, Jim said: “Usually hits me about six hours after a game. I’m just gonna enjoy this one. John-Harbaugh-coached football team, the Baltimore Ravens – as tough as they come as far as competitors.”
On top of this being the ‘Harbaugh Bowl,’ it is a great matchup. The Ravens are 7-4 and the Chargers are 7-3, with both vying for a spot in the AFC playoffs.
Full Week 12 schedule
Away @ home
Thursday
Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Cleveland Browns – 8:15 p.m. ET
Sunday
Kansas City Chiefs vs. Carolina Panthers – 1 p.m. ET
Minnesota Vikings vs. Chicago Bears – 1 p.m. ET
Tennessee Titans vs. Houston Texans – 1 p.m. ET
Detroit Lions vs. Indianapolis Colts – 1 p.m. ET
New England Patriots vs. Miami Dolphins – 1 p.m. ET
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. New York Giants – 1 p.m. ET
Dallas Cowboys vs. Washington Commanders – 1 p.m. ET
Denver Broncos vs. Las Vegas Raiders – 4:05 p.m. ET
San Francisco 49ers vs. Green Bay Packers – 4:25 p.m. ET
Arizona Cardinals vs. Seattle Seahawks – 4:25 p.m. ET
Philadelphia Eagles vs. Los Angeles Rams – 8:20 p.m. ET
Monday
Baltimore Ravens vs. Los Angeles Chargers – 8:15 p.m. ET
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